“not at its peak of form”, Vingegaard crushes the race – Liberation

2023-06-11 14:45:37

Without ever being worried, the winner of the last Tour de France won the event which traditionally serves as preparation for the Grande Boucle. On the French side, the results are mixed.

To say that he is not 100%… The Dane Jonas Vingegaard won the Critérium du Dauphiné, this Sunday, June 11, after a demonstration capable of disgusting the competition. The leader of the Jumbo-Visma team relegated his first competitor, the safe bet Adam Yates, to 2 minutes 23, a chasm after a week of racing. He grabbed the yellow jersey after Wednesday’s time trial, in which he won Yates by half a minute. Similar rate the next day, when he raised his arms alone in Salins-les-Bains. And again on Saturday, in the Col de la Croix-de-Fer, where Vingegaard again broke away alone to pick up a second solo stage victory and further widen his lead of around forty seconds.

Untouchable, the outgoing winner of the Tour de France has never been worried throughout this demanding race, which traditionally makes it possible to gauge each other three weeks before the start of the Grande Boucle. Suffice to say that the Dane is ready. He disagrees. “I don’t think I’m at my peak of form”, assured Jonas Vingegaard on Saturday evening, not really the swaggering type. Before considering having “still a bit of work ahead [lui] pour [s]’improve”. And, wanting to be reassuring: “I really suffer every time”. His adversaries too, who no longer even try to follow him when he starts, for fear of exploding in flight a little further. “He does not do the same sport as us.summarized with The team the Australian Ben O’Connor, who completes the podium.

Not content to ride faster, without being at full capacity, than most mortals ever will, even on an e-bike, Vingegaard can rely on colleagues made of the same wood. The Jumbo-Visma impressed in its management of the race, whether in the flat work done by Van Hooydonck or in the mountain relays of Tiesj Benoot and Attila Valter. Above all, the insatiable Dutch team gleaned two other stage successes at the start of the event with the French puncher Christophe Laporte, impressive in his explosiveness and who finished winner of the points classification.

Alaphilippe found, Gaudu lost

It is not the only tricolor to have shone during this Critérium du Dauphiné. Julian Alaphilippe also won a stage, took second place (behind Vingegaard) and finished 10th overall in the event. The double world champion, whose star had been fading for a year and a half, showed legs that we hadn’t known for a while. Encouraging while the first week of the Tour, in the Basque Country, presents profiles which are favorable to him. Author of a great week and a remarkable last ascent in Grenoble, Guillaume Martin finished best Frenchman with his 6th place in the general classification. He will have rode with the best each time the slope rose and limited his usual losses during the time trial. The event will finally have consecrated the hatching of Lenny Martinez, only 19 years old, author of several ascents full of promise.

In mirror, his teammate David Gaudu will have lived a worrying week. The leader of Groupama-FDJ will have been only the shadow of the one who had been so sparkling in March at Paris-Nice, that he finished in second place, ahead of Vingegaard. From Wednesday, when he finished the clock two minutes slower than the Dane, not a day went by without Gaudu losing time. This Sunday, he let go from the Col du Granier, while there were still three climbs on the program. We do not see how the Frenchman, 4th in the Tour de France last year, will be able to repeat the performance this year. Meanwhile, like a high school student who claims he screwed up before he turned 19/20, Vingegaard says he still has work to do.